Without a doubt Facebook is the number one social media site on the internet. Most people dislike it, but everyone knows you need to be on it, especially if you trying to run a business, and even more so if that is a photography one.

One of the very frustrating aspects of Facebook would be how it works and those algorithms. All of you who now use FB would know exactly what I am talking about. They seem to work in a world of their own and make no sense to most of us.

There are some things that we can do that will help us to use FB effectively.

Page vs profile

The first thing you need to work out is whether to have a fan page or a profile page. According to FB if you are running a business then you must have a page. You cannot run a business with just a profile page. It also looks far more professional if you have a page that is specifically for your business.

Posting

There is debate about how often you should post on your page, but whatever you choose the big thing you need to do is be consistent. People come to expect posts and if you are all over the place then they don’t know what to expect and stop looking.

How often to post

It is suggested that you can post up to three times a day. If you do any more then people can get tired of always seeing you. There are times when you will want to do more, it can’t be helped. Try to think about how you react to the way other people post. Who do you like and why?

Hashtags

Putting hashtags with your posts and photos is a relatively new thing with FB. People haven’t been doing it because they think they don’t work, but they do. It is a way of people finding you, like they do for other social media sites.

People liking your posts

Everyone wants people to like their posts and getting people to do that is the tricky part. The reality is that only about 10% of the people who follow or like your page are going to see what you post. The quicker people start to like what you have posted the more others will see it also, but not everyone will. It is one of the aspects of FB that many people dislike. The algorithm they use for who sees and who doesn’t is a mystery.

There are ways of getting more your followers and others to see what you post.

Boosting posts

This is called boosting and I’m sure you have seen or been asked to boost a post. Basically they are asking you to pay so that others will see it.

You can determine how much to pay, but there is no guarantee that it will be effective, I suppose it is the same with any advertising. The other thing you have to remember is that many people resent advertising and if your followers are getting it you might lose them.

My experience has been then that the first couple of times you do it, it can be helpful, but then you have to start paying more and more money to get the same result. As I said, that has been my experience, others might have found it more useful. I don’t do it anymore.

Best time to post

There are definitely good times to post that are optimal and will give you more likes. The problem seems to be that the times you hear about tend to be in the US. This is fine if your clients are there, but if your business is in Australia and you are trying to attract clients here, then you need to rethink.

Basically the best time to post is when people are online. Early morning, before work, people check their FB to see who has posted. The same is in the evening, after dinner is a good time, around 7pm. If you are looking for people with families, then maybe after the kids go to bed.

The best thing to do is experiment and see when you get the best results.

Getting followers/likes

This is the tough one, you can pay for them, but then they aren’t necessarily who you want. Just having lots of followers is no good if none of them are going to be clients.

You have to get yourself out there, so consider what you can do. One suggestion is to put photos up of your clients, become friends with them so you can tag them in your photos. When you tag them all their friends will see the photos and may become clients as well.

Finally

There are no hard and fast rules about using FB. Experimentation and persistence is the key. Be consistent and you will get a following. Encourage people to like your page and only put up your best work.